International sports competitors are inevitably driven and focused. Cromwell’s latest pair might be young, but their determination is fierce.
Cromwell BMX Club members Quinn Lindsay and Jono Hansen, both 11, have qualified for the New Zealand team to compete in the Mighty 11s transtasman BMX competition, in Auckland, at Labour Weekend.
Jono will be riding at number two in the team. Last year he rode in the team at number three in Australia. This year, Quinn will be the team’s fourth rider.
Both had been riding since they were pre-schoolers and said they were excited to increase their confidence and abilities through the competition.
Cromwell BMX club president Mouse James said the club was very proud of the pair.
‘‘They work very hard, both of them. They’ve been putting in the work and getting the rewards.’’
BMX was a great family sport and the club had members ranging from 4 to 50-years-old, Mr James said.
It was not just hard work, but hard cash that was required for Quinn and Jono to compete.
Fundraising had helped to offset some of the cost, Jono said.
‘‘Raffles. Lots and lots of raffles. And the bank of Mum and Dad,’’ he said.
The Mighty 11s is a BMX competition between New Zealand and Australia. It was created when the mother of an 11-year-old Ipswich BMX Club member who was killed in a car accident gave the club a trophy in his memory.
The transtasman BMX exchange was developed through the friendship between the Ipswich club president Neville Gray and New Zealander Errol Nelson who envisioned a cultural exchange along with BMX racing.
